The present invention relates generally to a grain drying apparatus and more particularly to a grain drying apparatus for use in conjunction with a storage type of grain bin having a perforated floor therein.
One of the most popular types of grain drying systems includes a grain bin which has a grain receiving chamber on the top portion thereof, a plenum chamber on the bottom portion thereof and a perforated floor dividing the plenum chamber from the grain receiving chamber. A fan of some sort is then normally mounted to the grain bin in direct communication with the plenum chamber. Such a fan is normally connected first to a concrete slab which has been poured or placed adjacent the grain bin and then directly to an opening in the bin.
It has been found that the grain in the grain receiving chamber which lies directly above the fan does not receive adequate air flow therethrough. This is caused primarily because the force of the air from the fan distributes the air directly past the grain thereabove and the force of this air from the fan creates a higher pressure immediately around the fan outlet which substantially prevents the air which is flowing in the plenum chamber and up through the floor from flowing directly upward above the fan outlet.
There is a substantial expense involved in providing the concrete foundation which is usually used to support a grain drying fan as discussed above. Heretofore, however, there has not been an adequate substitute found for such a support mounting.
Another problem associated with the mounting of a grain drying fan to a grain drying bin, has been the one of being able to disconnect and reconnect the grain drying fan from and to the bin in an efficient manner. This is true primarily because the fans have in the past been bolted directly to the grain bin and a portion of the nut and bolt assemblies used in such installations are necessarily inside of the plenum chamber. This creates no problem when the bin is being constructed, but when the bin is in use it is extremely difficult and sometimes impossible to have the access to the plenum chamber for adequately tightening or loosening the nut and bolt assemblies involved.